gaps in his own knowledge of the industry.
Finding the right people w as made easier
by some chance meetings. One was with
an old builder friend, Tim Davis-Rice, who
happened to be independently researching
modular accommodation at the time and is
now the production manager at Quicksmart
Homes. Another w as with a contractor,
Rufus Harding, now the company's
managing director, who had spent his
career working in the modular field in the
UK. The final appointment came when
the team stumbled upon talented young
designer Anna Biddle, who had worked
with sever al major modular construction
businesses around the world. She is now
head of design at Quicksmart Homes.
TREAT 'EM LEAN
"We had a few false starts," Lane admits.
"Our original concept was different to what
we've ended up with. We were targeting the
end consumer, but the flaw w as the end
consumer wanted something customised.
So we decided to start targeting larger scale
projects, developers and businesses that
had a need for quality and consistency."
It was an inspired move. Quicksmart looks
set to turn over A$30 million in its first year
and has almost recovered its research and
development and oper ating costs.
"It's looking very good," Lane says, "but
we've spent a lot of time and money setting
up the systems and infr astructure to ensure
we have a business that will endure. It's not a
small-scale operation, it's a major business,
despite the fact that we have just three full-
time staff besides me. We keep it lean."
How can they achieve so much with so
little manpower? Lane says he engaged the
ser vices of a manufacturing plant because
his business model is based on his aim to
not burden the company with unnecessary
overheads. "We keep it flexible and use
contracted staff when we need to," he
adds. "Today, for instance, there are five
people representing us in China, as well as
other people in Austr alia, in areas such as
accounting and sales and marketing."
The ANU job was the first of many.
Since then, the university has begun work
on another building that is 50 per cent
larger than the first facility, using modules
supplied, once again, by Quicksmart Homes.
Lane has been approached by three
major organisations interested in buying,
or buying into, the company. He has parked
these offer s for now, as he's looking
for ward to steering the business through
this period of establishment and growth.
Quicksmart Homes has more than A$300
million worth of tenders in the student,
hotel and aged-care sectors on its books,
along with requests for its products from
two universities in the US.
"The prefabricated market in Australia
was worth $1.8 billion last year," Lane says.
"I'd be happy to get a nice slice of that, but
our focus is always on delivering quality.
"When I first met with ANU, they asked
me why they should choose me for the job,
because I was new in the game. I assured
them that I was not going to put my money
behind something that does not reflect
my commitment to quality. These values
have been drilled into me by my family and
their business and they are what will make
Quicksmart Homes a success."
It's a major
business,
despite the
fact that we
have just three
full-time staff
besides me.
We keep it lean.
VIRGINBLUE
112
business profile